1 Killed, 3 Hurt in Thousand Oaks Gang Shootout

A Camarillo teen-ager was killed in a gang-related shootout during a birthday party in a Thousand Oaks back yard, part of a fracas about midnight Saturday that carried over into the parking lot of a hospital, sheriff’s deputies said.

Miguel Flores, 18, was pronounced dead at Los Robles Regional Medical Center from a gunshot wound to the chest, authorities said. Three other teen-agers were wounded.

The brawl spilled over to the hospital parking lot, where keyed-up gang members confronted and threatened one another, witnesses said. About 40 sheriff’s deputies were sent to the hospital to prevent further violence.

Caught in a cross-fire in the back yard, Celena Mendoza, 19, of Thousand Oaks, was hit in the right shoulder and suffered a spinal injury and collapsed lung. She was in critical condition Sunday, paralyzed from the waist down. She was one of two guests of honor at the party.

A 16-year-old from Thousand Oaks, shot in the leg, was in fair condition, and Marcos Lopez, 19, of Saticoy, was treated for a gunshot wound to the left leg and released early Sunday, authorities said.

One teen-ager was under arrest on suspicion of murder Sunday afternoon, said sheriff’s deputies. The 16-year-old from Thousand Oaks was not identified because of his age.